The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has stated that the State is now closer to realizing its dream of changing into a smart city with the deployment of 5G technology in the state.
The Governor acknowledged this on Thursday at the Lagos launch of the 5G community by MAFAB Communications (Mcom).
Speaking at the launch, Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by the State’s Commissioner for Science and Technology, Akeem Fahm, stated the general goal of the administration is to harness technology to improve and empower the residents and buyers in Lagos to obtain the transformation of Lagos State right into a smart City Hub in Africa.
The 5G alternative: Expressing the confidence that the 5G technology will bolster the authorities’s efforts in the smart city drive, the Governor stated:
- “I am now very optimistic that we will achieve resounding success because the opportunity that the Mcom5G network represents has met our preparedness part of which is the country’s technology hub found in the Yaba district of Lagos, which when completed will be our own African Silicon Valley.”
The Governor famous that Mcom, although comparatively new in the telecommunications business, has recorded a milestone achievement in the tech house by the launch of the 5G Network.
- “I want to commend the administration of MAFAB Communications for working onerous to ship this subsequent-stage technology that outguns the 4G community by a really broad margin. As such, its capabilities exceed expectations.
- “It is a fact that the contribution of the telecommunications industry has been a significant economic driver for Lagos State in particular and Nigeria as a whole, contributing more than $70 Billion and helping to create over half a million jobs. The prospects of what we can accomplish with the 5G network, which is the next-level technology, fills me with high hopes for the future of the different sectors of our economy, most especially the Security sector,” Governor Sanwo-Olu stated.
Mcom which is rolling out a 5G community in 6 cities throughout the nation in the first part of its rollout obligation, together with Kaduna, Kano, Enugu, and Port-Harcourt, landed in Lagos after a launch in Abuja on Tuesday.
5G in Nigeria: Highlighting the impacts the 5G technology will have on Nigeria as a rustic, the Chairman of MAFAB Communications, Dr Mushabu Bashir, stated:
- “Putting issues in correct perspective; Mcom will play a serious position in advancing new applied sciences that will push Nigeria past simply being a shopper of technology but a rustic enjoying an lively position in growing and implementing new applied sciences.
- “It will also enable our country to take its position as a global technology hub in Africa and the world at large. You may have heard it before, but it bears re-telling that the 5G network will usher into this country a wide array of business opportunities, wherein various business outfits will expand their frontiers with operational ease and speed, especially in the fields of education, medical sciences, engineering, security, businesses like the banking sector, SMEs, smart cities, transportation, entertainment, etc., and allow Nigerians meet the long-term goal of ensuring that everybody is connected.”
MAFAB was issued the 5G licence alongside MTN in December 2021 as the first 2 firms to deploy the technology in Nigeria. Airtel additionally secured the licence in December 2022 to develop into the third operator and the firm is additionally anticipated to roll out the service this 12 months.